Brother of Fallen Newman Officer Joins Pres. Trump on Border Trip

MCALLEN, Texas — President Donald Trump arrived at a Texas border town to make the case for his long-promised border wall after negotiations with Democrats blew up over his funding demands.

With him was Reggie Singh, brother of slain Newman Police Corporal Ronil Singh. Officials say Cpl. Singh was shot and killed by a man living in the U.S. illegally.

Trump traveled to McAllen, Texas Thursday on the 20th day of a partial government shutdown. He is seeking to use the trip to bolster his argument that a wall is needed on security and humanitarian grounds.

Trump toured a section of the U.S.-Mexico border later, seeking to bolster his case for spending billions of dollars on a border wall.

A law enforcement officer told Trump during his tour that a greater percentage of apprehensions in recent weeks have involved people from places other than Mexico and Central America. He cited people from Pakistan, China and India as specific examples.

“So they apprehended people from the Middle East and they do it all the time,” Trump told reporters.

The president and congressional Democrats remain at an impasse over his demand for $5.7 billion for a wall along the southern border. Critics say Trump overstates the security risks and that the administration is at least partly to blame for the humanitarian situation.